


Professionally Screened Incompatibility

by nonky



Category: Blindspot (TV)
Genre: F/M, Oliver Kind (Blindspot)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-27
Updated: 2017-01-27
Packaged: 2018-09-20 08:13:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,486
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9482378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nonky/pseuds/nonky
Summary: It was surreal to be screening Jane's potential dates, but Kurt would do a good job. Even if he was hoping they were all monsters he had to arrest immediately.





	

Jane turned to look at him, her eyes wide as she registered everyone else on the elevator was exiting. Weller attempted a smile, but it faltered when she turned away quickly. 

"Jane," he asked. 

"Sorry," she said. "I was going to say something. I'm just thinking if I . . . should?"

He watched the doors close and nodded as the car started moving. "Okay. Can I help you make the decision?"

She was miserably uncomfortable, and he thought he might know where this would lead. Patterson had taken an interest in Jane's phone, coaching her on friendly texting shorthand. There had also been a few whispered conversations that left Jane blushing. Either Patterson was dating again, which seemed unlikely after her last two boyfriends, or Jane had a suitor. 

Kurt was prepared to take it well. He wasn't in a good place to demand anyone wait for his personal life to be less complicated. Jane was a free woman. He couldn't justify demanding she live like a nun to let him hold out some hope of being with her in some unspecified future date.

"I don't think so," Jane said meekly. "I don't want to make it harder to work together."

"We work together pretty well," he said, shrugging. "Under the circumstances, the team is doing good."

"I feel bad asking for favours, but this is probably something more like a security issue - maybe. I don't know. Borden being the mole and all the things with Oscar have pushed me to err on the side of caution," she said. "I don't want to be paranoid, but I've been texting with a man I met. I feel like I need to know he's not another connection back to Shepherd before I can consider . . . seeing him."

He noted how close they were to their floor, and gestured to his bundle of files carried under one arm. "A background check is a fair use of FBI resources. We missed Borden, and we owe you some piece of mind. Let's get this mess to my office and I'll see what I can do," he offered. "You know you can ask the team for help?"

Jane shifted her weight, rubbing at her elbow as she hugged herself. "It seemed unfair to ask one of the team to do it secretly because I felt weird. That puts the weird feelings on them, too, and they work for you."

"They know my ideas on how far to chase a lead solo before getting back-up," Kurt said. "Same goes with using FBI computers to dig a little. There are times and places I'd take issue, but a new person crossing your path is a potential threat."

The elevator opened and he led the way to his office. The extra few seconds it took for Jane to catch up were telling. She caught the door and pulled it shut, blocking sound to the rest of the office. 

Kurt set down his load of files and pulled a drawer open. He tapped a file on his knee, debating a stall tactic. He could pretend he hadn't ordered a background check on Oliver Kind minutes after their return from the undercover mission where Kind had introduced himself to Jane. He could play it off as a lack of interest, and it might improve the odd vibration of disrupted longing between them. 

But Jane was nervous, and she'd been holding back on having a life because she didn't trust herself. Letting her suffer wasn't going to make his ambivalence about her making dates melt away. 

"The guy is Oliver Kind, right?"

Jane gave a tiny twitch of surprise, her only reaction other than looking guilty. He turned to the summary and started reading the main points. 

"He cleared our checks right after that gala. He has money, but no more than can be explained by working and a respectable inheritance. He travels, but all the trips line up with some campaign for his environmental concerns. The charities all get the money donated without any strange hidden fees draining the proceeds."

Kurt had never hoped to see worthy charities being screwed out of money, and he had dug in for any personal dirt that would expose Jane to mistreatment. It was surreal to be screening Jane's potential dates, but he would do a good job. Even if he was hoping they were all monsters he had to arrest immediately. 

"His last two girlfriends said he was often neglectful during busy times, but never anything but a gentleman. Good credit and his coop board has no complaints. He has never been arrested or served in the military. Every stage of his life has been on the radar stateside, with no red flag behaviours. He's never been married, no children, and he is being considered for a promotion he will likely receive."

She leaned forward to take the file when it was offered. Kurt watched her skim the pages, her eyes dilating. Larger pupils were supposed to signify interest. He'd seen the signs of that in person, and he wasn't eager to see it again.

"We check people you meet. It's meant to be noninvasive but it does need to happen. We also started doing the same for the personal lives of the team. Sandstorm lost a mole and they have to be missing that source of information. It's not a favour or an imposition to ask for the protection we promised," he said. 

Jane was still flushed, but her soft smile made him smile back. "Thank you. I don't want to reject the world instead of living in it. I just know it matters what I choose. Do you think he's a good person?"

That was a really broad question. Weller cleared his throat. He should say something neutral and fair, but dishonesty wasn't very helpful. 

"I hate the guy and want to set him on fire," he said frankly. "I think he's probably dumber than he seems and I'm not fooled by Kind as his name. He's probably promiscuous and not worth your time. You can do better. He grew up rich, so you know he's going to have all these trivial pet peeves. He's never had a pet, and kids who grew up the way he did usually have a dog. Maybe animals don't trust him; it's a thing with some psychopaths."

Jane was obviously startled, then puffed out a tiny, flattered chuckle. "I'm a barely reformed terrorist amnesiac, and I'm too good for him?"

"Way too good for him," Kurt said firmly, smiling now. "Him and the fake gluten sensitivity he probably has, along with the weird ideas about what are proper movie snacks."

"Popcorn and something chocolate to share," she said immediately. "And the medium drink because the large means you're just back and forth to the bathroom the whole second half of the movie."

He pushed back from his desk, the banter helping with the dull ache of Jane's interest in another man. He was having a baby with another woman and it couldn't happen for them while Roman was in a cell downstairs. He didn't want Jane to have bad experiences. He just really didn't want her to have any good dates. 

"Exactly, but do you want to have that argument and miss the trailers? I'm telling you from unfortunate experience, he's a dog hating psychopath who'll bring quinoa puffs to a movie. But it's up to you."

"I'm starting to lose my nerve," Jane joked. 

"Nothing wrong with waiting until you find someone really right for you. And you tell me if Patterson installs Tinder on your phone, because I'll suspend her for a week. Don't let Tasha push you into wearing short skirts. And if this guy gets fresh, you call me or Reade to come pick you up."

He was kind of joking, but she shuddered anyway. "Wow, I'm not sure dating can even be fun with all those rules. Maybe I'll look into a religious order to join."

"You'd make a great nun, and I think that's a real option," Kurt agreed immediately. It luckily took a while to get to the celibate bride of Christ point of no return, and he could use the piece of mind. He couldn't ask Jane to wait, but if she happened to be waiting anyway . . . Convents were very peaceful, relaxing places. "Hey, did you notice Oliver's eyes are strangely close together? It's almost like a deformity - like an inbred kind of a warning sign. Just sort of an overly pointy, ferret face. See it?"

"Okay, I'm going away now, thanks for you help. Please stop talking. Bye." Her retreat was punctuated with a rattling slam of the door and a playful flee across the office to her desk.

Kurt found a red pen, and drew Oliver some horns, a tail and a villainous moustache. He nodded to himself and fed the photo to the shredder.


End file.
